Morphogenesis and mechanical properties of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens biofilms: a comparative study of rough and smooth morphotypes

Bacillus amyloliquefaciens, a Gram-positive, endospore-forming bacterium, is ubiquitously found in diverse environments. Its resilience in harsh conditions and biofilm-forming capabilities make it a promising candidate for various agricultural applications. B. amyloliquefaciens can also colonize the...

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Main Authors: Emmanuelle Baudu, Eric Raspaud, Catherine Fontagné-Faucher, Yassine Nait Chabane, Claire-Emmanuelle Marcato-Romain
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-01-01
Series:Current Research in Microbial Sciences
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666517425000653
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author Emmanuelle Baudu
Eric Raspaud
Catherine Fontagné-Faucher
Yassine Nait Chabane
Claire-Emmanuelle Marcato-Romain
author_facet Emmanuelle Baudu
Eric Raspaud
Catherine Fontagné-Faucher
Yassine Nait Chabane
Claire-Emmanuelle Marcato-Romain
author_sort Emmanuelle Baudu
collection DOAJ
description Bacillus amyloliquefaciens, a Gram-positive, endospore-forming bacterium, is ubiquitously found in diverse environments. Its resilience in harsh conditions and biofilm-forming capabilities make it a promising candidate for various agricultural applications. B. amyloliquefaciens can also colonize the air-liquid interface by producing pellicles. Despite its potential, the characterization of B. amyloliquefaciens biofilms remains underexplored. We investigated colony expansion and pellicle formation kinetic, followed by an analysis of the mechanical properties of the latter. This work focused on B. amyloliquefaciens strain L-17, which produced two morphotypes on agar plate: 1) a rough (R) morphotype exhibiting quick colony expansion and 2) a smooth (S) morphotype with a slower but extended colony expansion. The morphogenesis model of pellicle formation proposed in the literature for Bacillus subtilis was applicable to B. amyloliquefaciens, with few modifications for the smooth morphotype, which needed a longer period to spread over the surface. Mature pellicles were visually homogeneous and heterogeneous for R and S, respectively. Surprisingly, (i) their deformability by stretching was heterogeneous for the former and homogeneous for the latter; (ii) R produced a stiff pellicle whereas the entire smooth pellicle showed an elastic response.Taken together, results of this study confirmed that the existence of two distinct morphotypes within the same strain offers a unique opportunity to study the diversity of behaviors in B. amyloliquefaciens, providing insights into its potential applications in agriculture and beyond. Moreover, they led to the hypothesis that surfactant production and flagella expression are differentiating factors between both morphotypes.
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spelling doaj-art-cfb714f68c304e5485ad3c1cf2cc98922025-08-20T03:11:26ZengElsevierCurrent Research in Microbial Sciences2666-51742025-01-01810040310.1016/j.crmicr.2025.100403Morphogenesis and mechanical properties of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens biofilms: a comparative study of rough and smooth morphotypesEmmanuelle Baudu0Eric Raspaud1Catherine Fontagné-Faucher2Yassine Nait Chabane3Claire-Emmanuelle Marcato-Romain4IUT de Toulouse Auch Castres, LBAE URU 4565 (Laboratoire de Biotechnologies Agroalimentaire et Environnementale), Université de Toulouse, 24 rue d'Embaquès, Auch F-32000, FranceCNRS, Laboratoire de Physique des Solides, Université Paris-Saclay, Orsay 91405, FranceIUT de Toulouse Auch Castres, LBAE URU 4565 (Laboratoire de Biotechnologies Agroalimentaire et Environnementale), Université de Toulouse, 24 rue d'Embaquès, Auch F-32000, FranceIUT de Toulouse Auch Castres, LBAE URU 4565 (Laboratoire de Biotechnologies Agroalimentaire et Environnementale), Université de Toulouse, 24 rue d'Embaquès, Auch F-32000, France; Corresponding author.IUT de Toulouse Auch Castres, LBAE URU 4565 (Laboratoire de Biotechnologies Agroalimentaire et Environnementale), Université de Toulouse, 24 rue d'Embaquès, Auch F-32000, FranceBacillus amyloliquefaciens, a Gram-positive, endospore-forming bacterium, is ubiquitously found in diverse environments. Its resilience in harsh conditions and biofilm-forming capabilities make it a promising candidate for various agricultural applications. B. amyloliquefaciens can also colonize the air-liquid interface by producing pellicles. Despite its potential, the characterization of B. amyloliquefaciens biofilms remains underexplored. We investigated colony expansion and pellicle formation kinetic, followed by an analysis of the mechanical properties of the latter. This work focused on B. amyloliquefaciens strain L-17, which produced two morphotypes on agar plate: 1) a rough (R) morphotype exhibiting quick colony expansion and 2) a smooth (S) morphotype with a slower but extended colony expansion. The morphogenesis model of pellicle formation proposed in the literature for Bacillus subtilis was applicable to B. amyloliquefaciens, with few modifications for the smooth morphotype, which needed a longer period to spread over the surface. Mature pellicles were visually homogeneous and heterogeneous for R and S, respectively. Surprisingly, (i) their deformability by stretching was heterogeneous for the former and homogeneous for the latter; (ii) R produced a stiff pellicle whereas the entire smooth pellicle showed an elastic response.Taken together, results of this study confirmed that the existence of two distinct morphotypes within the same strain offers a unique opportunity to study the diversity of behaviors in B. amyloliquefaciens, providing insights into its potential applications in agriculture and beyond. Moreover, they led to the hypothesis that surfactant production and flagella expression are differentiating factors between both morphotypes.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666517425000653PellicleColony expansionMechanical propertiesStiffnessElasticity
spellingShingle Emmanuelle Baudu
Eric Raspaud
Catherine Fontagné-Faucher
Yassine Nait Chabane
Claire-Emmanuelle Marcato-Romain
Morphogenesis and mechanical properties of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens biofilms: a comparative study of rough and smooth morphotypes
Current Research in Microbial Sciences
Pellicle
Colony expansion
Mechanical properties
Stiffness
Elasticity
title Morphogenesis and mechanical properties of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens biofilms: a comparative study of rough and smooth morphotypes
title_full Morphogenesis and mechanical properties of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens biofilms: a comparative study of rough and smooth morphotypes
title_fullStr Morphogenesis and mechanical properties of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens biofilms: a comparative study of rough and smooth morphotypes
title_full_unstemmed Morphogenesis and mechanical properties of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens biofilms: a comparative study of rough and smooth morphotypes
title_short Morphogenesis and mechanical properties of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens biofilms: a comparative study of rough and smooth morphotypes
title_sort morphogenesis and mechanical properties of bacillus amyloliquefaciens biofilms a comparative study of rough and smooth morphotypes
topic Pellicle
Colony expansion
Mechanical properties
Stiffness
Elasticity
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666517425000653
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